A Brief Introduction
By Will Ruark







Well, Hello! My name is Will Ruark and I will be serving Gaston County Museum as the new Programs Assistant. I wanted to introduce myself a little bit. I had the wonderful opportunity to grow up in a little city in Western Maryland called Cumberland. My father was a Maryland State Park Ranger and from an early age he involved me in outdoor programming and historical programming. (Sometimes that involved holding owls half the size of me or wearing colonial garb!) I attended Presbyterian College (Go Blue Hose!) in Clinton, SC and graduated with a BA in History and International Studies. After graduation I accepted two positions in the Maryland State Park Service. I worked a season as a Park Ranger and worked for the Americorps’ group Maryland Conservation Corps. Both positions allowed me to continue doing programming with children and adults, as well as serving the state and nation conserving the environment. (I even had the opportunity to fight Wild Fires out in Idaho and Utah!)



A younger me with a great horn owl!



I recently moved back to the Carolinas and am incredibly excited to assist with programming here at the Museum. I hope to instill my enthusiasm about history through my programs. And, I look forward to seeing you! Come and visit soon!

Gaston County Historic Jail
By Jeff Pruett
As Director of the Gaston County Museum of Art & History I get asked often “what are our plans for the historic jail?” In this blog, I plan to discuss a thumbnail sketch of the historic jail’s past and its future. To begin with, let’s discuss the jail’s interesting history.

In 1848 the Gaston County Jail was completed by Abraham Mauney and his enslaved African-American workers, and Benjamin Morris became the county’s first Sheriff. In the 19th century, it was routine for the Sheriff and his family to live in the jail, so they occupied the lower floors while the prisoner’s jail cells were located on the second floor. It was expected that the Sheriff’s wife and family would do the cooking, cleaning, and laundry for the prisoners.

In 1874, there was a fire in the jail, but the structure still retains original brick, cells, windows, and foundations. The building like other 19th century jails is a two story brick structure with a basement that recesses to the first floor. The walls are twenty-four inch solid load bearing brick walls and the exterior is penetrated by the windows on the upper level that are placed evenly across the front and rear of the building. The original bars are embedded in the windows and they all have granite sills. The work involved in restoring the jail is going to be an undertaking, however with the background from other successful jail restorations steps can be taken to move forward.

If you have input on how you would like to see the jail renovated, we are having a Jail Forum on Thursday, June 5 from 6:30 – 8:30 PM at the museum. After this forum, the museum will be making a formal plan for the jail, creating sketches, and beginning to move forward on the restoration of this priceless structure. Please RSVP to Gina Anderson at 704.922.7681 x100 if you are interested in this project.

GCM's New Administrative Assistant

By Gina Anderson

I am excited and honored to join the Gaston County Museum staff as the new Administrative Assistant.

While I’ve lived in Gaston County all my life, I certainly don’t know all there is to know about the county.

Henry Ford once said, “Anyone who stops learning is old, whether he is 20 or 80. Anyone who keeps learning stays young.” I want to stay young!

I am looking forward to learning more about the museum and the cultural heritage of the county I’ve always called home. In fact, I must share a few very important details I learned about the museum on day one. Without volunteers the museum could not serve the community. Did you know every year the Gaston County Museum of Art and History reaches nearly 20,000 people? How? The museum offers a wide variety of programs, events and exhibits including on-site school field trips, outreach programs, original and inspirational art shows, concerts, summer camp and so much more all while keeping a historical, yet lively, museum open to the public.

It takes volunteers to keep things rolling, and the museum is looking for a few more happy faces to do just that! Please drop by our Volunteer Open House on Monday, May 19, 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. We have a volunteer opportunity for you! You will be surprised how volunteering just a few (and I really do mean a few) hours a month can benefit the museum. If you can’t make it to the open house but still want to consider volunteering at the museum, just call or email me! Let’s learn and grow “young” together!

Gina Anderson
Administrative Assistant
704-922-7681 ext. 100
Gina.anderson@gastongov.com